Livni Presents Six-Point Plan for Gaza Ceasefire

Justice Minister's new plan links a ceasefire in Gaza with a return to peace negotiations with the Palestinian Authority.

By Elad Benari, Canada

First Publish: 8/8/2014, 10:32 PM

Tzipi Livni

Flash 90

Justice Minister Tzipi Livni has presented a six-point plan which links a ceasefire in Gaza with a return to peace negotiations with Palestinian Authority (PA) Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

Channel 2 News reported about the details of the plan on Friday evening. Livni has presented the plan to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu but he has yet to respond, the report said.

Livni’s plan includes the following steps:

A ceasefire.

Immediate humanitarian assistance to the residents of Gaza.

Measures that will meet both Israel’s security demands and the economic needs of the people of Gaza, equating the interests of the parties.

Recognition of the Palestinian Authority as the ruling party of Gaza, while recognizing the principle of one law and one military force.

Establishment of a mechanism that would ensure that any assistance and money transferred to the PA will help the residents and not be spent on terrorism.

Opening border crossings to Gaza while establishing a mechanism to prevent terrorism, and renewing peace negotiations with Abbas.

Speaking to Channel 2 News on Friday evening, Livni explained that her plan may be supported by the international community, adding that Hamas made acceptance of her plan easier when it announced on Thursday that it would refuse a ceasefire in Gaza unless all its demands are met, including the establishment of a port.

"It is clear to everyone today that they have no interest in compromising," she argued. "Their demands are based on agreements that they themselves do not accept (i.e. the Oslo Accords), so this plan represents the interests of the security of Israel and the world can accept it.”

Livni stressed that she is opposed to dialogue with Hamas and any agreement to its demands.

"You do not reward them for their aggression," she added, but declared, "I, like most of the members of the Cabinet, believe that Abbas is a partner."

"The conflict has shown that Hamas does not want to actually lift the blockade, because it had an opportunity to do so in 2006," said Livni, who made ​​it clear that all operational options are on the table. "Any action will be possible if Hamas continues to fire on Israel,” she declared.

Livni earlier this week had harsh words for the “sour spin”, as she put it, of the Israeli media on Operation Protective Edge.

"Take a look at the current situation and what we have achieved thus far," she said Monday. "Their leadership is still burrowed in, and they don’t dare show their heads above ground ...they have 1,800 dead and have not attained even one of their goals."

"With them, there will always be the one who will stick his head out of his bunker to say ‘We won!’, and with us, there will always be someone who will rush to cry out, 'We lost!'" she added.

(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Shabbat in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)